Insomnium Rather than reviewing a single album, I'm just going to look at the whole band. Their latest album, at right, is Above the Weeping World. They have two other albums as well, Since the Day It All Came Down and In the Halls of Awaiting. They have a new album due out next month.
This is a heavy, heavy band with a lot of musical talent. That pretty much sums up my entire impression of this group. Insomnium has strong guitars, great drums, and strong, deep-thought lyrics.
Their music is thoughtful, well-rounded, but not so "out there" that regular people won't like it. This isn't some art club band, but they are good musicians for sure. Their music isn't Prague Rock, neither is it just plain heavy/death metal. It's some kind of mashup of the two.
The video below is for their song The Elder and does a good job of showing off their talent:
Monday, August 24, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
The Agonist - Lullabies for the Dormant Mind
Lullabies for the Dormant Mind is the latest album from The Agonist, releasing in March of this year.
This is another hardcore, death metal band with a female lead. Their music is full of changes and alternates between harsh metal chords and quiet backgrounds. Leading the vocals is Alissa White-Gluz whose voice is full of range, going from the growling, grind of death metal to the nearly-operatic tones of a metal front.
The unique look of the band is another thing here. Were Alissa to not have multi-colored hair and several piercings, you'd guess she was just the girl next door with no metal grind to her at all. Possibly even a Brittany Spears fan?
The guitars (bass and lead) are manned by Chris Kells and Danny Marino, respectively. These two play off one another well, showing a range beyond the usual 3-chords of power. If you listen carefully, you'll hear the inspired drumming of Simon McKay as well, which is subtle in most of the band's songs, but ads more flavor than you'd think.
Overall, this is a great band. This album is a great addition to their lineup of discs so far. It's not as gritty and is more thoughtful than Business Suits and Combat Boots.
This Canadian band is definitely worth keeping your eye on. Great stuff from an up-and-coming powerhouse!
This is another hardcore, death metal band with a female lead. Their music is full of changes and alternates between harsh metal chords and quiet backgrounds. Leading the vocals is Alissa White-Gluz whose voice is full of range, going from the growling, grind of death metal to the nearly-operatic tones of a metal front.
The unique look of the band is another thing here. Were Alissa to not have multi-colored hair and several piercings, you'd guess she was just the girl next door with no metal grind to her at all. Possibly even a Brittany Spears fan?
The guitars (bass and lead) are manned by Chris Kells and Danny Marino, respectively. These two play off one another well, showing a range beyond the usual 3-chords of power. If you listen carefully, you'll hear the inspired drumming of Simon McKay as well, which is subtle in most of the band's songs, but ads more flavor than you'd think.
Overall, this is a great band. This album is a great addition to their lineup of discs so far. It's not as gritty and is more thoughtful than Business Suits and Combat Boots.
This Canadian band is definitely worth keeping your eye on. Great stuff from an up-and-coming powerhouse!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
THX 1138
THX 1138 stars Robert Duvall. This was, as I understand, Lucas' first foray into full directorial control of a movie. I think his talent shows through here, as the movie is very well done.
The storyline is pretty straight forward. Take Orwell's 1984 and mash it up with Huxley's Brave New World and you've got THX. Although this makes it sound as if the plot is kind of boiler plate, it's not really. The cinematography really sets the mood here.
Rather than being the bleak, crumbling world of 1984 or the 1970s disco of Brave New World, this one is a more sanitary, whitewashed, boring future world. Nearly everything is white or gray and so are the lives of those who are involved in the movie.
The police robots are in black, with blank, human-like but empty faces and the boring monotone of most people's speech finishes off the plainness of the world.
The ending sequence to this movie is great, with an extremely interesting bit of camera work and set building. You'll know what I'm talking about once you see it.
Overall, this is a great movie. The story may not be as poignant as the two classics mentioned, but it's still definitely worth watching. Careful with the kiddies as there is some nudity here, but it's tastefully done.
The storyline is pretty straight forward. Take Orwell's 1984 and mash it up with Huxley's Brave New World and you've got THX. Although this makes it sound as if the plot is kind of boiler plate, it's not really. The cinematography really sets the mood here.
Rather than being the bleak, crumbling world of 1984 or the 1970s disco of Brave New World, this one is a more sanitary, whitewashed, boring future world. Nearly everything is white or gray and so are the lives of those who are involved in the movie.
The police robots are in black, with blank, human-like but empty faces and the boring monotone of most people's speech finishes off the plainness of the world.
The ending sequence to this movie is great, with an extremely interesting bit of camera work and set building. You'll know what I'm talking about once you see it.
Overall, this is a great movie. The story may not be as poignant as the two classics mentioned, but it's still definitely worth watching. Careful with the kiddies as there is some nudity here, but it's tastefully done.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Girl Scout Hand Grenade
Girl Scout Hand Grenade has three things going for it as a band, in my book:
The band's motto is "We Are Goats in a Word Full of Sheep Metal."
I mean comon. How killer is that? For some reason, I totally get wood when I see a chick singing death metal. When they're actually good at it? The big O comes.
The band is from Michigan. You can see their MySpace at this link. They have a full album out and have been around long enough to establish that they aren't some garage band with a bunch of lame tunes for your wedding.
Girl Scount Hand Grenade is pretty hard core and definitely loud. Some of their stuff is pretty boilerplate death/grind core, but lots of others jump out and say "mosh, f'er, mosh." Then I wish I hadn't cut my hair and try to spin it anyway.
When you go to their page, try Birth of the Resistance for a cool song with some changeups and harsh thrashing. Try Raul Julia is Dead for something completely different you probably won't expect from a death metal band. Great tune.
Below is probably my favorite, though, called Avoid Embrace. Enjoy!
- They're a death metal band with a kind of punkish rhythmic
- They have a really cool name
- They have a chick lead singer
The band's motto is "We Are Goats in a Word Full of Sheep Metal."
I mean comon. How killer is that? For some reason, I totally get wood when I see a chick singing death metal. When they're actually good at it? The big O comes.
The band is from Michigan. You can see their MySpace at this link. They have a full album out and have been around long enough to establish that they aren't some garage band with a bunch of lame tunes for your wedding.
Girl Scount Hand Grenade is pretty hard core and definitely loud. Some of their stuff is pretty boilerplate death/grind core, but lots of others jump out and say "mosh, f'er, mosh." Then I wish I hadn't cut my hair and try to spin it anyway.
When you go to their page, try Birth of the Resistance for a cool song with some changeups and harsh thrashing. Try Raul Julia is Dead for something completely different you probably won't expect from a death metal band. Great tune.
Below is probably my favorite, though, called Avoid Embrace. Enjoy!
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Defiance
Defiance starring Daniel Craig (aka James Bond) and the guy who was the Manchurian Candidate in the latest version of that film. Liev something. I think he was Wolverine too.
Anyway, I wasn't sure what to expect from this one. I knew that having Craig in it would mean stuff would probably blow up and he'd probably spend some time looking like he wanted to kill people. What I didn't expect was for him to (sort of) be the pacifist in this movie.
The movie tells the story of the Jews of southern Russia and their flight into the forest. Some of them have a thirst for revenge against the Nazis and join with the local partisans. Others, like Craig, look for survival and work to support the partisans in supply and repair and so forth, but do not participate in bloodshed except in self-defense.
The movie is based on true events and some of those depicted in the movie are still alive today.
The conditions were horrible, the times were brutal, and the chances of survival were not very good. But they got through all of it. That's kind of the gist of this movie.
The back story is one of brotherhood, love, deep friendship, and the coming together of ideals after long separation.
It's a great movie, but definitely not one for the kiddies. Lots of violence and warfare scenes, for sure. Definitely worth seeing, though. Highly recommended.
Anyway, I wasn't sure what to expect from this one. I knew that having Craig in it would mean stuff would probably blow up and he'd probably spend some time looking like he wanted to kill people. What I didn't expect was for him to (sort of) be the pacifist in this movie.
The movie tells the story of the Jews of southern Russia and their flight into the forest. Some of them have a thirst for revenge against the Nazis and join with the local partisans. Others, like Craig, look for survival and work to support the partisans in supply and repair and so forth, but do not participate in bloodshed except in self-defense.
The movie is based on true events and some of those depicted in the movie are still alive today.
The conditions were horrible, the times were brutal, and the chances of survival were not very good. But they got through all of it. That's kind of the gist of this movie.
The back story is one of brotherhood, love, deep friendship, and the coming together of ideals after long separation.
It's a great movie, but definitely not one for the kiddies. Lots of violence and warfare scenes, for sure. Definitely worth seeing, though. Highly recommended.
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